(Photo courtesy of the Iowa Board of Medicine)
State regulators have revoked the license of a former Iowa physician who surrendered his California medical license amid allegations of inappropriate conduct with juvenile female patients.
Last year, the Iowa Board of Medicine charged Dr. Najeeb Khalil Ahmed Ansari with violating the laws or rules governing the practice of medicine in another, unspecified state; failure to report disciplinary action to the board, and failure to respond to a board investigation.
At the time, the board did not publicly disclose any information as to the circumstances that gave rise to the charges or when they occurred, except to say that Ansari was “an Iowa-licensed surgeon who practiced in the Coralville, Iowa, area at all times relevant to this order.”
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However, in those same board documents, the board indicates Ansari’s license to practice medicine in Iowa, first issued in December 2019, expired in January 2022. Federal records indicate that while in Iowa, Ansari worked as a pediatrician at Ottumwa Regional Health Center.
Records from the Medical Board of California indicate that in 2023, Ansari was charged by that board with incompetence and negligence. The California board alleged that at least seven girls, all between the ages of 11 and 17, complained of Ansari’s conduct at a time when he was working as a pediatrician.
Court records and board documents indicate all seven complaints pertained to patient exams that took place in October 2020 at Fresno’s Clinica Sierra Vista Elm Avenue Women’s & Pediatric Clinic. According to the board, Ansari removed some of the patients’ underwear for them before performing genital exams.
The board alleges that in the case of one 15-year-old girl, he allegedly asked the girl to remove her underwear, but then, “when she did so slowly, he took over and stripped them off.” Ansari was alleged to have done the same thing to another 15-year-old girl, with the board alleging that when the patient “pulled her underwear down to her knees, (he) removed them the rest of the way.”
Ansari agreed to surrender his physician and surgeon license after the medical board alleged his behavior violated the standard of care expected of physicians and was evidence of incompetence and gross negligence. The board had also charged Ansari with failing to maintain adequate records by neglecting to document his patients’ medical histories.
As part of a settlement agreement with the board, Ansari agreed to pay the board $131,000 to offset the cost of its investigation before his California license can be reinstated.
The Iowa Board of Medicine recently concluded Ansari violated the standards of practice through his actions in California and that he also failed to report the California case to Iowa authorities as required and failed to cooperate with the Iowa board’s investigation. The board revoked Ansari’s Iowa license.
Currently, Ansari is being sued by his malpractice insurance provider, ProAssurance Specialty Insurance. In that case, the company alleges Clinica Sierra Vista fired Ansari in October 2020 after alleging he had “sexually abused multiple pediatric patients.”
The lawsuit seeks a court declaration that the insurer is not obligated to defend Ansari from legal claims filed against him by one of the teenaged patients and by the clinic. The insurer cites a coverage exemption in its policy that indicates “sexual abuse of a minor” does not constitute a covered incident arising out of professional medical services.
Court records show that in the six months since that lawsuit was initiated, Ansari, who is believed to be residing either in Florida or California, has not filed a response. On June 29, 2026, a federal judge issued an order stating that unless Ansari files a response by the first week of August, a default judgment will be entered against him in the case.
The Iowa Board of Medicine alleges Ansari did not respond to letters and calls from its investigators over the past 10 months. The Iowa Capital Dispatch was not able to reach Ansari for comment.
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Courtesy of Iowa Capital Dispatch
